Airmen Rescue Chinese Fishermen

Airmen from the 563rd Rescue Group spent more than 11 hours treating and rescuing two critically injured civilian Chinese sailors from a Venezuelan fishing boat 1,100 nautical miles off the Mexican coast in the Pacific Ocean May 2. The airmen were preparing to take part in a combat-rescue exercise called Angel Thunder when they got the call for the real-life emergency. The two sailors apparently were the only survivors of an eight-man crew of a fishing vessel, which sank after it caught fire. The Venezuelan vessel rescued the two men and issued the call for help. Air Force pararescue teams reached the stricken sailors first, after jumping from an HC-130J Combat King II aircraft and deploying inflatable boats with medical equipment. They treated the injured men, and moved them to a burn-treatment facility in La Jolla, Calif.